Her Royal Highness The Countess of Wessex will be making it a day to remember for pupils, staff and governors when she visits Hawkedon Primary School on Wednesday (February 8) to officially open the new family and foundation centres.
Christine Weston, deputy lieutenant for the Royal County of Berkshire, will receive Her Royal Highness before she tours the school accompanied by headteacher Alan Youd and chair of governors Dave Williams.
The school has recently opened its new family centre as well as the EarleyBird and Hawkedon Foundation Centre. Earleybird is a voluntary pre-school which has been working with Hawkedon on establishing a purpose built unit since 2006 when the borough council invited the school to undertake a project to create a foundation partnership. The family centre provides a base for the breakfast and afterschool club, self-help parent groups and community meetings. The school also organises its own courses for parents.
On arriving at Hawkedon Primary School, Her Royal Highness will be greeted by local dignitaries before embarking on a tour of the school. First of all Her Royal Highness will visit the foundation centre where children aged between three and four years will be enjoying a range of activities from the traditional art and creative play to the more interactive on a large plasma screen. Her Royal Highness will then move onto the family centre where she will meet Mandy Canar, parent support advisor, members of the parent self help group and play club supervisor Nita Blanks.
Her Royal Highness will continue her tour of the school and will meet many children as she passes through classrooms.
Wokingham Borough Council has submitted a planning application to expand Hawkedon Primary School from September 2012. Under these plans, Hawkedon Primary School in Lower Earley would be expanded from 70 to 90 places every year to cope with extra demand. This expansion is required to give every child needing a place the best possible opportunity to attend a school near their home. Her Royal Highness will have the opportunity to view the plans and discuss them with the borough council’s executive member for education services Cllr Rob Stanton.
To mark the end of the visit, Her Royal Highness will join the pupils from year 2 in the school hall where she will hear the school choir sing ‘Youth of the World’, a song from the forthcoming Wokingham Schools’ Concert. Her Royal Highness will be presented with a posy of flowers from foundation pupil Poppy Chilton. The posy has been designed and made by Samantha Pibworth, a past pupil. Before leaving, Her Royal Highness will be invited to unveil a plaque to mark the official opening of the EarleyBird Foundation and Hawkedon Family Centre.
Headteacher Alan Youd said: "We are extremely pleased and proud that Her Royal Highness The Countess of Wessex has agreed to officially open our new centres. They have been a vision of the governing body for the past 13 years."
Wokingham Borough Council’s Mayor Cllr Dianne King said: "It will be an honour to welcome Her Royal Highness to Hawkedon Primary School. The new facilities at the school are fantastic and it promises to be a very memorable day for all the pupils, staff and governors."
